A man who has killed and injured animals while sexually abusing them, asked a judge for chemical castration so he can be released from prison.

46-year-old Michael Bessigano of Hobart, Indiana, has been incarcerated in January, when he violated his probation.

His attorney Jennifer Soble told the court that Bessigano never meant to hurt animals when he engaged in sex acts with them.

She said that Bessigano, who had a difficult childhood and never received love, turned to animals for affection, and he began to engage in sex acts with them.

Soble claims he was driven by a sexual desire rather than a wish to hurt animals.

Soble also told the court that her client does not pose a risk to the human population. Her client wants to be released on the condition that he takes a drug that would reduce his testosterone levels.

An associate professor at the Johns Hopkins University School of Medicine, evaluated Bessigano and wrote that the hormone treatment could prove effective.

According to Soble, the prison system is not equipped to help people like her client.

Court records show that Bessiagano has a history of animal abuse dating back to the 1991. His sexual history involves guinea fowl, dogs and chickens.

Bessigano served more than four years in prison for having sex with a chicken and then killing the animal. Bessigano allegedly admitted to having sex with dead animals, including a raccoon, when he was a child.